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The Colony (2013). Yet another movie that ends just as I think it's finished setting things up for the main story.
Not actively bad, just not anything you seen haven't numerous times before (possibly with less snow, though).

Yeah that's really not what the film is about at all. There's lots of layered criticism in there about state intervention while also maintaining a narrative with rich characters and their personal decisions/flaws/etc.

There'd be a stronger argument to make about how it represents the state and drug policy as being preachy, though I don't think it is.

Well, I admit I watched the film over a decade ago so my memory might be distorted. But I do remember drug addiction ending in prison/amputation/insanity/prostitution. I don't recall state being an active actor there, it had little to do with Marion and nothing to do with Sara. I don't felt drug policy itself was criticized, it was simply there - and I remember in those years War on Drugs was far less discredited as it is now - or at least that's how I felt then.

Well, I admit I watched the film over a decade ago so my memory might be distorted. But I do remember drug addiction ending in prison/amputation/insanity/prostitution. I don't recall state being an active actor there, it had little to do with Marion and nothing to do with Sara. I don't felt drug policy itself was criticized, it was simply there - and I remember in those years War on Drugs was far less discredited as it is now - or at least that's how I felt then.

Well the insanity and amputation are part of the bit I mean. The state / medical workers find someone with an arm that has gone septic from heroin injections... instead of treating him they send him to prison where he ends up losing the arm. Sara is violently force fed and has electro convulsive therapy on incredibly dubious consent grounds.

To me that's critical of the institutions not the drugs themselves. So yeah it's far broader and more interesting than "drugs are bad m'kay", though I'm going to go out on a limb and say heroin is pretty bad.

Infected (2013). I don't know if this is supposed to be a comedy, a slasher or a horror movie. All the characters are unpleasant and/or stupid. The actors seem like they're drugged and/or haven't acted before. The director and editor were probably on something too. And anything at all is an excuse to insert random bits of songs.
It's like some amateur movie where all the director's friends got a role, except it has Michael Madsen and William Forsythe in it.

Those are my impressions after half of the movie. I doubt it'll get better.

Prisoners - Wow that was extremely depressing, tense, and absolutely engaging and engrossing. Everyone brings there A game to this, Hugh Jackman is someone completely different to anyone he has played and does very very well in the role he has, disturbing but understandable as well which makes it even worse! The plot is very well done with the usual twists and turns you expect in a thriller but it seems so god damn realistic, its like its got ripped from a headline or something. Very recommended but do be warn its not the most comfortable or happy of watches.

Also watched Prisoners at the weekend. Great movie. Brilliant performances by everyone. If I've one gripe about it, it's that some of it seemed to obvious (maybe I just had a lucky guess). To me it was obvious that Alex didn't take the kids, at least not alone. That his Uncle or Aunt had some part in it. Particularly when he says "they only cried when I left them". Then there was the medallion around the corpse in the priests hidden basement. The movie made such a point of that as to say THIS IS A PLOT PIECE REMEMBER IT!, but of course the detective doesn't remember it at all until he stumbles across a picture of it which just happens to fall the right way up in his fit of rage.

But that's about it. Everything else was great. Really liked the very end of it too.

"Halo is designed to make the player think "I look like that, I am macho sitting in my undies with my xbox""

Iron Sky. Well-crafted nonsense. I wouldn't say it's a good movie, but they certainly put effort into it and that alone saves it, I think. It feels a little like they were afraid to take things too seriously, so they went too far in the other direction and got a bit too Mel Brooks-ish at times (I've only rarely found Mel Brooks funny, so that doesn't work for me).
Space zeppelins are nice.

I watched Carrie (1976) for the first time last weekend. Somehow I'd never gotten around to it before.

The buildup to the finale was exceptionally well done and somewhat surprisingly didn't really on some kind of terrible reveal that my prior knowledge of the film would have spoiled. Instead, everything is laid bare ahead of the climax and the film builds up a potent tragedy instead of relying on a more typical horrific twist. These seeds of preparation really help prevent the earlier part of the film becoming dull, despite the simple story and sparse action.

In short I loved it, and now I'm fully equipped to comprehend how badly the remake will almost inevitably screw it up.

I watched Gravity in 3D and I must say it was amazing. This is from someone who swore off 3D movies after being disappointed after watching several of them recently. But a friend whom I saw the movie with said he knew several people who felt 3D really enhanced the experience, and I must say they were absolutely correct. The movie is a visual masterpiece, and tense throughout. Don't go in expecting any kind of story or much character development, you're there for the spectacle of it if you're smart.

I'd recommend this to anyone and wholeheartedly say go for the 3D experience if you're at all curious.

If I've one gripe about it, it's that some of it seemed to obvious (maybe I just had a lucky guess).p

I agree with all your points, though I think maybe it is the point that your not really supposed to think he did it to much I think you get the fact that he is a bit of an innocent but you can also tell why the Hugh Jackman character would think that he did it.

The one thing I thought was a bit of a leap and they didn't explain to well was that how Hugh Jackman got to know the Aunt was the one who did it, I litrally had to go to the wikipedia page cause I was confused and thought how did he know! It turned out it was very subtle and im probably not the only one who missed it.

Anyway good film and probably very high up in the list...though the list isn't very large this year lol...

I had a far less favourable view of Prisoners. To me, it was one of those pulpy, airport-read crime novels given far more gravitas, film artistry and acting wattage than it deserved. The whole ethical dilemma was rendered moot by the cavalcade of contrivances that actually solved the mystery and it all felt rather silly by the end. It looked gorgeous and Jack Gyllenhaal was terrific but Hugh Jackman gave a one-note RAAARGIMMEBACKMYDAUGHTER performance and actors like Maria Bello, Viola Davis and Terrence Howard were wasted in nothing parts. It wasn't awful but not even close to being awards worthy. There was enough skill here thought that I am still very much looking forward to the director and Gyllenhaal's next collaboration, the doppelganger mind-fuck (well, that's the word on it so far), Enemy.

And there have been plenty of good films this year. Just to roll-off a few: Mud, The Great Beauty, The Act of Killing, Frances Ha, Upstream Color, The Rocket, Wadjda, A Field in England.

I finally got around to watching the 1983 version of Hercules with Lou Ferrigno. It's regarded as one of the most entertaining so-bad-it's-good movies there is and I can now say it absolutely deserves that reputation. It's really something special. It starts out harmless enough as yet another take on the Hercules myth but there are just so many weird throw-ins that come completely out of left field. I don't want to spoil it for anyone because you should really watch it but there are many scenes where you will end up wondering what the hell just happened. Add poor acting and extra cheesy special effects and you end up with what might be the weirdest take on Hercules.
Don't believe me? This is a scene from the beginning:

This is one of the less bizarre scenes. It is also not the last time he hurls stuff into space. Seriously, go watch it.

The Great Gatsby - Really intriguing. First thing its probably the most gorgeous film I think I have seen since Life of Pi, just truly breath taking and it fits the story with all the rich people going about. This I think has been much maligned of having the style of rich parties but no substance but I think that is rubbish, its quite a unhappy and bleak tale really and I think it shows that well. Underneath the glam and glitz there's a lot of depressed looks, and creepy imagery that gives you a sense that this is not all going well really. Especially those eyes on the billboard, that was the creepiest imagery i think ive ever seen and i really don't know why. It was quite intriguing and I thought the character of Gatsby was very well done by Leonardo Di Caprio who definitely has the charm for it but also able to get the most emotional moments as well. Had a hard time gauging Toby Magires character to be honest he seems just to be...there seeing all this stuff its kind of like if you took him out not much would change really...i guess he is an audience surrogate but you kind of don't need a narrator for cinema really the camera can be the audience. Anyway I think this is a great film and it actually made me want to read the book which I think as adaptations go is probably a great thing.

Man of Steel. Well, that was certainly ... something. I kept forgetting I was watching it, which sums it up fairly well, I think.
Also, I'm admittedly not that familiar with Superman, but I never knew they had dragons on Krypton.